Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for May 22, 2015

And here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this time with yet more Hugo debate, a Game of Thrones controversy as well as plenty of discussion of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Mad Max: Fury Road.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Damien Walter declares that fantasy must shake off the tyranny of the mega-novel. 
• Natasha Pully responds and points out that fantasy cannot establish sufficient worldbuilding in short fiction. 
• James Aquilone shares his appreciation for Flash Gordon. 
• Ezra Glinter profiles the Strugatsky brothers.
• Jason Heller discusses the popularity of dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction.
• Nicolette Stewart shares ten post-apocalyptic novels written by women. 
• Robert Ito wonders what happened to the optimistic mid-century future seen in the movie Tomorrowland.
• Maria Farrer explains why teenagers often have to take enormous risks in YA fiction.
• Barbara J. Webb talks about secondary world urban fantasy. 
• Deonna Anderson shares 6 black female SFF writers to read.
• Rochita Loenen-Ruiz discusses the uses of anger. 
• Joyce Chng discusses Chinese werewolves. 
• James Lamb claims that superhero diversity is impossible.
• Donovan Grant disagrees.
• Monica Byrne discusses her experiences trying to pitch a diverse pop culture column to Wired. 
• Simon Pegg discusses the commercialisation of SFF nerd culture. 
• Ryan Britt discusses five aspects of SFF that are far from childish.
• Ryan Britt also shares seven bizarre connections between Star Wars and James Bond.
• Cass R. Sunstein explains how Star Wars illuminates constitutional law. Really.
• Barnes & Noble recommends seven books sure to infuriate those who hate strong women in fiction.
• Lane Robbins talks about the lack of female action figures. 
• The Mary Sue discusses Wonder Woman and the importance of the parental narrative in superhero comics.
• Natalia Mehlman Petrzela asks whether we need Wonder Woman.
• Noah Berlatsky weighs in on Wonder Woman. 
• Dan Seitz explains why we should be optimisticabout the Supergirl TV show.
• Anthony McGlynn asks people to stop comparing the Supergirl trailer with the Black Widow Saturday Night Life skit. 
• Cora Buhlert discusses Outlander, sex and the female gaze. 
• Gilbert Colon has compiled all SFF references in seven seasons of Mad Men. 
• Emily Asher-Perrin shares her appreciation for the 1985 film Real Genius.
• Cat Conway points out that the live-action adaptation of Jem and the Holograms completely seems to miss the point of the original story. 

Awards:

• The nominees for the 2015 eFestival of Words have been announced.
• The nominees for the 2015 Scribe Awards for tie-in fiction have been announced.
• The Hugo Voters Packet is available for download at the Sasquan website. 

Hugo controversy:

• The Wall Street Journal weighs in about the Hugo controversy.
• Eric Flint weighs in on the Hugo debate again and yet again.
• Natalie Luhrs responds to Eric Flint.
• Kevin J. Maroney weighs in one the Hugo debate here and here.
• Brianne Reeves shares her thoughts on the Hugo controversy.
• David Gerrold points out that the Hugos should be about merit rather than politics.
• Kristene Perron discusses how stories evolve over time, using Crocodile Dundee, Cinderella and the Hugo controversy as an example.
• Spacefaring Kitten disagrees with Brad Torgersen and disagrees with him some more.
• Alexandra Erin also disagrees with Brad Torgersen.
• Adam Troy-Castro talks about echo chambers and feedback loops in connection with the Hugos.
• Undulent Fever plays Hugo Mad Libs.
• Nicholas Whyte explains how he will be voting for the Hugos.
• Floris M. Kleijne explains how he will be voting for the Hugos.
• John Scalzi explains how he will be voting for the Hugos and points out that there is no right or wrong way to vote.
• Martin Wisse has a proposal for increasing participation in the Hugo nominations.
• Alis Franklin points out that the Hugos are irrelevant to many younger fans who are active on tumblr.
• Kevin Standalee compares fandom and Worldcon to a giant potluck dinner.

Game of Thrones controversy: 

• Shaun Duke explains why he quit watching Game of Thrones. 
• The staff of The Mary Sue explains why they will no longer be promoting Game of Thrones.
• K. Tempest Bradford discusses rape in fiction and film, using Game of Thrones as an example. 
• Sonya Saraiya explains what Game of Thrones can learn from Mad Max: Fury Road.
• Sarah Mesle wonders just what sort of fantasies Game of Thrones is peddling.
• George R.R. Martin responds to the controversy surrounding the Game of Thrones TV show.

Discussion about Avengers: Age of Ultron:

• Drew McWeeny takes an indepth look at Avengers: Age of Ultron. 
• Jim C. Hines shares his thoughts on Avengers: Age of Ultron. 
• The Fangirl Happy Hour podcast discusses Avengers: Age of Ultron. 
• Ashley Reed discusses the controversial Black Widow/Hulk scene from Age of Ultron.
• Daniel J. Dombrowski shares 5 things he didn't like about Avengers: Age of Ultron. 
• Peter Watts is not at all happy about Avengers: Age of Ultron.
• Peter Berbegal discusses the rich history of The Vision, the android superhero from Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Discussion about Mad Max: Fury Road:

• Kim Newman shares his thoughts about Mad Max: Fury Road. 
• Jill Pantozzi also shares her thoughts on Mad Max: Fury Road.  
• Melinda Snodgrass shares her thoughts on Mad Max: Fury Road.
• Abigail Nussbaum shares her thoughts on Mad Max: Fury Road.
• Mandalit del Barco shares her thoughts on Mad Max: Fury Road.
• Adrian Tchaikovsky declares that Mad Max: Fury Road is his favourite film of the year so far. 
• Leah Schnelbach calls Mad Max: Fury Road one of the best films of the year and explains why it's not just great but also important.
• Art Eater discusses the themes and imagery of Mad Max: Fury Road. 
• Alissa Wilkinson attempts to explain what Mad Max: Fury Road says about religion.
• Ethan Gilsdorf looks at Mad Max then and now. 
• Ben Wilkie views Mad Max: Fury Road as an example of Australian gothic.
• Jason Sanford predicts that Mad Max: Fury Road will not change Hollywood immediately, but will have a huge impact down the line.
• Sean O'Neal explains that some men are mad that Mad Max: Fury Road has female characters who are not just decoration.
• Donna Dickens explains how Mad Max: Fury Road sublimely subverts movie sexism.
• George Miller and Charlize Theron discuss the alleged feminist agenda of Mad Max: Fury Road. 
• Silvia Moreno-Garcia explains why Mad Max: Fury Road is the feminist movie you didn't think you needed. 

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Ben Galley wonders whether the self-publishing stigma is fading.
• Elle Casey shares some tips for aspiring writers. 
• William Dickerson explains how to please others but still be true to your work. 
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch talks about predictability and writing by committee.
• Stina Leicht talks about the importance of writing at your own pace.
• Aaron Miles looks at point of view. 
• Charlie Jane Anders discusses how to raise the stakes of your story without wrecking the characters.
• Brian Klems explains how to introduce your protagonist. 
• Paula S. Jordan explains what happens when characters take control of the story.
• Caddy Rowland explains why it is important to include LGBT characters in all genres of fiction.
• Critical Shit discusses the taxonomy of fictional spaceships.
• Lindsay Buroker discusses how to increase sales on an old or flagging series.
• Joe Konrath and Rob Siders discuss book design. 
• Write, Dream, Repeat discusses the five most common formatting mistakes in indie books.
• Michael R. Underwood discusses the many sides of bundling.
• Stephanie Leary discusses effective book marketing strategies from a reader POV.  
• David Neth discusses the differences between indie and traditional publishing. 
• Steve Davidson discusses the SFWA opening membership to indie authors with Cat Rambo and M.C.A. Hogarth. 
• Juliet McKenna discusses the global consequences of the new EU VAT regulations.
  

Interviews:

• Gawker interviews Daniel José Older.
• Aidan Moher interviews Hugh Howey.
• The Skiffy and Fanty Show interviews Andrea Phillips (podcast link).
• S.C. Flynn interviews The G. of Nerds of a Feather.
• The Scottish Herald interviews Sam Heughan, star of Outlander.

Reviews:

• Kyra Halland reviews Out of Exile by Derek Alan Siddoway.
• The Cheap Reader reviews Gifted by H.S. Stone.
• Chewy, Julie Ann Dawson's dog, reviews New Sun Rising by Lindsay Edmunds.
• Salena Casha reviews Signal to Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
• Emily Asher-Perrin reviews the first episode of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.
  

Crowdfunding:

• The World SF Travel Fund needs some help to bring Bulgarian writer Haralambi Markov to World Fantasy Con.

Con reports:

• The Little Red Reviewer shares some photos of PenguiCon in Detroit.
• The Denver Post reports about Denver Comic Con and its epic growth.
• Kevin Standalee explains how Worldcon site selection works and how you can get involved. 

Science and technology:

• Alastair Reynolds explains why humanity may yet reach the stars. 
• There has been a leap forward in the hunt for Earth-like planets.
• NASA challenges designers to construct a 3D-printed deep space habitat.
• A Spanish company called Vortex Bladeless has developed wind turbines without blades.

Free online fiction:

• "Elephants and Corpses" by Kameron Hurley at Tor.com. 
• "Ginga" by Daniel José Older at Tor.com.
• "By Degrees and Dilatory Time" by S.L. Huang in Strange Horizons.
• "Breaking the Spell" by Rochita Loenen-Ruiz in Lightspeed.
• "Five Days of Captivity", part 52 of Musketeer Space by Tansy Rayner Roberts.
• Chapter 11 of The Pirate's Grand Plan by K.S. Augustin. 
• Chapter 1 of "Those Not Forgotten", part 86 of The Descendants by Landon Porter.

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a trailer for Legends of Tomorrow. 
• Watch a trailer for Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials.
• Watch a trailer for a TV adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End.
• Watch a trailer for the TV adaptation of Lev Grossman's The Magicians.
• Watch an epic rap battle between Groot and Hodor.